2014-01-19 - SDR: Welcome to Atlantis. Enjoy Your Stay.
The research ship stopped. They were supposed to be hitting the edge of Atlantean territory any time now, according to the male scientist... Merik? Yeah, that sounds right. Though when he had come in a couple hours prior to let Clint and Natasha, he had a slightly amused smile playing across his face, and gave Clint that kind of grin a guy gives when he can't high five without drawing unwanted female attentions. So when the ship stops, anyway, since they had been warned, Natasha isn't exactly shocked. She pushes away from the wall she had been sort of leaning against as best she could, floating towards the middle of the room. "Well, this means we're closer to Namor and a fix to this," she notes, unconcerned for now. "Joy," Clint replies from his tube, he wasn't sleeping but it was just somewhere he could laze without expending too much effort floating away somewhere. He pulls himself out of it and floats over towards Nat. "Going to kick him in his Speedo wearing junk for turning me into a merman." He crosses his arms and frowns. "Not that this suit is much better to be honest." Natasha grins, a hand reaching out to 'catch' Clint by the forearm as he floats near, much like the ballerina she had been in a previous life. And the acrobat he was in his. "I don't know," she chuckles. "I rather like the suit." Her gaze flits over him, and then she gives him an all-too-innocent look. "But no kicking him in the... junk... until he's fixed this." Clint nods his thanks, first for the assist with stopping then the complement. "Thanks, figured you would," he says and mercifully does not shake his ass. "And fine, no junk kicking, until we're cured. Though I did think of something that might work on a temporary basis to get us to breath air again. I've got a couple of vials of Newt in my kit, for you know, contingencies. Might shut this down since it's an alteration." Natasha considers it. "We'll call this 'Plan B'." Which, if things go the way they usually do for this pair, means that's probably what plan will end up being implemented. "Of course, they will have to allow us access to our gear first." That they haven't chafes at the spy, but she is handling it remarkably well. Which probably indicates that she is plotting, already, four or five ways to reacquire their equipment. Some of them may even not involve casualties. Clint nods. "Yeah, plus it might not work, I mean you're blood must still be swimming with Newt and it still worked on you," he says. Did it work that way, what did he know? He wasn't a chemist or anything. "So what do we call Namor anyhow? Your fishy-majesty? Or..." The door slides open, and a dark-haired Atlantean man, heavily muscled, floats in, his gaze unflinching and pitiless. "So. You are the 'refugees'?" He scowls. "And speaking of Namor? I knew this would happen. I tried to warn the king, but he would not listen... you are spies." Natasha turns towards the man, her body tensing as if to spring... but floating doesn't lend well to this. "You can tell Namor," she replies coldly, "that we have better things to do than spy on a underwater city." "Oh, I /will/," the man replies icily. "What she said," Clint says frowning at the new grumpy guy who's entered their room. "So, who are you exactly?" he asks. "I am Orm Marius, head of the king's guard." The man looks at Clint, his eyes flitting up to take in Clint's haircolor and then back to lock eyes with him. "And you are now my prisoners." "I don't think so," Natasha replies, pushing off the floor to try and land a kick on the man's face. However, she is far slower than she would be in air--and he easily moves aside, grabbing her by the ankle and slamming her into the wall. His gaze never breaks from Clint's as he pulls off this feat. "Not bad fishy," Clint says. He learned from trying to kick the doctor, sweeping motions were not your friend under the water so he goes for a jab. "But let's see how you do with someone your own size." Natasha looks slightly stunned for a moment, but she uses that the man has a grip on her ankle as an anchor, twisting under the water and punching for the man's sides-- the easiest shot she has. He reaches up with his other hand, far faster than Clint can move in the water, and catches the archers punch, twisting him so that Clint spins in the water, going from right side up to upside down in a moment. Natasha's fist connects, but his side isn't the soft, easy to hit kidney she was expecting-- no, Atlantean physiology is denser and far more protected. He looks down at her, and tsks. "Girl, I suggest you stop your flailing now." To Clint, he shakes his head. "This is not your place, breather. I did not reach the position I did by being a poor fighter-- and perhaps you are good on the surface, but you fight poorly in the water." "Right, then we'll just surrender now," Clint says and since he's upside down now anyhow he throws another jab at Orm's junk. So much for promises. "Try and grapple him Nat." "Da." And Natasha curls closer, recalling some of her zero-gravity combat training... not a very useful skill most of the time, but that was the closest analogue she had to the sort of fighting she was going to need to employ now. She latches onto his leg with her arms, upside down, her leg that isn't being held by Orm wraps around his arm, twisting roughly. Orm snarls as his attention is drawn by the redhead trying to get him wrapped up in a grappling grip, his attention leaves Clint-- at just the wrong moment, as the archer's fist connects with a very sensitive area of Orm's suit. A mental yelp of pain echoes throughout the research vessel. Grinning. "The universal greeting," he thinks and then he kicks his legs and makes a grab for Orm's legs to help Nat get control over fish boy. "Think we've got a bit of a timer on this Nat." That yelp sounded like it carried. But Atlanteans are a bit more... sturdy... than humans. Even humans that have been recently turned into Atlanteans. Orm's face twists into rage, a foot lashing out to catch Clint on the side of the head, and reaching over to grab Natasha by the front of her suit, ripping her off of him and hurling her across the room. She hits the wall and bounces off of it, floating away from the point of impact, a few bubbles escaping her lips. It felt like being thrown into a wall by Tony in his suit. Not her best day ever. "Now," he growls, "Apparently you want to do this the hard way. That's fine. I have no qualms about killing you both-- but our king will want to talk to you." He looks at Clint pointedly. "I don't have to have /both/ of you alive to speak to him." He looks between the two of them, his brow furrowing for a moment, and then a not-very-nice smile cross his lips. He meets Natasha's pained gaze, and then Clint's. "If you don't behave, I'll kill her, and make you watch, breather. That will keep you in line." The kick rung Clint's head like a bell and the water around it is pinkish and cloudy with blood. Just a trickle, but still. When Orm threatens Natasha, Clint backs off, holding up his hands. "Alright then Norm, take us to your leader." Natasha curls up slightly, and then flexes, stretching out the now-bruised muscles on her back. She swims over to Clint, checking his head--he already had an injury from the sub accident, and now this?--, pointedly ignoring Orm. "Clint. Are you all right?" Her fingers lightly run over the place on his skull where the earlier injury was. Orm glances down the hallway, and the sounds of two or three other guards can be heard coming. "No," Clint answers about his injury. "But I can get there from here," he says and rolls his shoulders and turns himself right side up. "So, beginning to have second thoughts about that beacon idea of mine, by the way," he adds dryly to Nat as he hears the guards coming. Natasha murmurs back to Clint, intending for only him to hear, "I am too. Dying with you may have been a better option." Orm lifts a brow. "That can still be arranged," he comments dryly. The other guards come in, bearing wrist shackles for the two SHIELD agents. "Yeah, I'll pass, unless that guy wasn't joking about the whole eating jelly fish thing," Clint quips to Orm while the guards come in with the shackles. He looks over at Nat "So, how do you think Atlantean shackles will be? As uncomfortable as HYDRA shackles or are we going to be lucky and they'll be comfortable as AIM ones?" Clint's joking but Nat at least can probably feel the desperation there. He's usually more jokey the worse the situation gets. "HYDRA ones may be more uncomfortable but they are easier to slip," Natasha replies evenly as the first pair of shackles are put on her wrists. The guard does not seem amused at their jokes, as he yanks her forward by the shackles and towards the door. The second guard moves to Clint to shackle him as well. Clint offers up his arms for the shackles. "True, but that might just because they give you so much motivation to want to slip them," he adds as they are locked into place. Then he's yanked forward as well. He keeps his eyes flicking around at the guards at the ship, at 'Norm' trying to find an opening he can exploit to make a break for it. There's always an opening, he and Nat had proven that at least a dozen times in the past. Natasha's concern is for Clint-- he'd been struck in the head again by Orm, and she knew he hadn't recovered from his head wound taken in the sub accident. "When we get to Namor," she comments to Clint, "My earlier orders about not kicking him in the junk have been rescinded." She allows the guard to drag her along the corridor in the research vessel towards the exit. Orm and the two guards bring them out of the vessel-- and Natasha's first impression is that it's /damned cold/ outside. The Atlanteans don't seem overly bothered by it. "Keep moving," Orm orders them both. Swimming up from the palace to meet the vessel is Aquaman and his Entourage. taking no notice of the Easter Egg the ruler of Poseidonis is riding a huge gold colored seahorse at the point of a wedge of soldiers riding similar mounts and bearing spears and banners. Somehow the banners are actually flowing and rather regal. The sea king has a cold, stern expression on his face, much like Namor. He doesn't know that either. "Report, major. What is going on?" Orm's fist, and the fists of the other guards, raise to their chests. "My king," Orm replies respectfully. "Namor sent spies in the guise of humans in distress. When looking over their gear, the captain of one of our research vessels realized the mistake he had made in 'rescuing' these two. I was bringing them in for questioning." Clint looks up when Aquaman arrives. "Hey, it's you from the ship," he blurts out before he can stop himself. Then more quietly, focusing his thoughts at Nat alone he adds "He was at the raid on the ship going to Japan. He's friends with Arsenal from the Titans." The tension just melts out of Clint's shoulders. Finally something familiar. "Oh," Natasha attempts to think privately back to Clint. Attempts because her thoughts are anything but private. "He's a friend of Arsenal?" That other other archer from the other world. Or maybe he was the other other other archer. Something. But that he's relaxed is enough to cool her down, slightly. She's not thinking /completely/ of ways to get out of the shackles and incapacitate--probably kill-- the guards at this point at least. "Wait. /Namor/ sent spies? You think we're /Namor's/? I thought you were bringing us to that pompous kretin to have to grovel." The ex-KGB agent gives Orm a dark look. Aquaman gets a look of recognition. He looks carefully at Clint, "Right. The boat. It will be easy to prove you are no imposter. I'll call Arsenal's mentor who is my colleague." He looks over at Natasha and says, "I'm not so insecure a king as to require groveling. Those who do it freely are no use to me and those who fake it and would debase themselves are not to be trusted. But I will speak to you two in a moment." He looks back at Orm and says, "How exactly did they masquerade as humans, Major? I ask because they seem to be breathing water with the rest of us. What was the evidence the captain found?" Clint nods to Aquaman before he turns back to Nat. "The red-headed archer from the other world, the one I get mistaken for sometimes. I haven't met the other one yet." He explains. He doesn't bother Aquaman though, since he seems to be their best shot at getting free. Orm nods. "The evidence is being brought down from the ship. They were given the serum-- I have already spoken to the captain regarding taking such a rash action-- but when the ship they had been found in was searched, there was proof that these two were not just humans in distress. Weapons, equipment meant for espionage, the ship itself was intended for stealth. And they were close to one of our outposts." Apparently that was enough in Orm's mind to seal their fate, though he was looking for Namor's hand in most plots of late. Natasha blinks incredulously at the man's 'report'. Then, she laughs. Derisively. "We are agents of SHIELD. Of course we had weapons and equipment in our sub," she says coldly. "As for your outpost-- the last time I knew /where/ we were, we were in the Long Island Sound." Aquaman rubs the bridge of his nose. "All right before I go all kingly would either of you care to venture a theory how the Hell you got from Long Island Sound to the Indian Ocean?" The seahorse riders slowly float to the sides, top and bottom of Clint and Natasha. They keep their spears pointed politely away though. In demeanor these soldiers seem almost like SHIELD agents, not hostile so much as highly alert and ready. One stands on either side of Aquaman ready to intercept any attacks on their king. "Not sure, we were attacked, we didn't get a good look at our attackers, and then we just ended up at the bottom of the ocean," Clint says to Aquaman rubbing the wounded side of his head. "Wait, the Indian Ocean?" the pieces start to fit together. "Crap. I think I have an idea. We were transporting prisoners who were working on an anti-mutant drug, I think we got hit by some mutants, they've got their own island out in the Indian Ocean," he looks to Nat for confirmation. "Genosha," Natasha confirms. "North, northeast of Madagascar. ...but why would..." Frustration and anger roll off of her like waves, despite the fact that she looks perfectly calm. "Ah. The EMP. Magneto must have just... fried us and dropped us. Assumed we were dead." They might as well had been. Aquaman stops rubbing his nose. "Okay. It must be truth because if you were going to lie you'd have made up something less farfetched. I would like to get you checked out by one of our healers. Do you have any injuries; are you feeling side effects from the serum?" The soldiers relax a little, except Orm. Clint turns his head to show Aquaman. "Major Norm over there kicked me in the head and there's no side-effects of the serum, oh, except it apparently can't be reversed," he reports. "And yeah how we got here, it sounds stupid in my head too, but it's totally true." Natasha is more practical. "Can we get these cuffs off, please?" she asks with a lifted brow. Aquaman looks over at Orm and then scans the faces of his men. There are several tightly confined telepathic buzzes. The crew all hang their heads. "You are relieved Major. Return to your quarters," he says quietly. He turns to one of the horsemen, "Escort the Major to his quarters and see that he remains there until I send for him. Have Morkanth set facilities for our guests up in the palace." Silently Orm salutes and swims off followed by several horsemen. "Take those damned shackles off now! We are not at war and we are not savages! " A crewman fumbles with the key device until Aquaman grabs it and removes the shackles from Clint and Natasha. He slides off his mount and offers it to Clint. "Please. Storm will take you to our healer. I will assist your friend. I am Orin of Atlantis. Aquaman is my surface name." Clint looks up at the sea horse and despite his anger and despite the weirdness of everything it's impossible to keep a boyish glint from his eyes as he turns back to Orin. "Thank you, uh, King Orin," he says the last part turning into a question since he doesn't know how to address him properly. He ducks his head and looks back to Nat as he starts towards Storm. "Are you going to be okay?" he asks her. Natasha gives Clint a considering look, then nods once. "I assume I will see you shortly, after you've been seen by the medic?" that question is more directed towards Orin than Clint. She mentally pushes towards Clint alone (or attempts, at least, failing, of course), "And if not, I will find you, or you will find me. We did not survive all this for me to lose you now, lyubimiy." Her expression is the same ice queen expression she tends towards in front of people she does not know well. Aquaman ventures a small smile at the ice queen. He extends a hand and says, "We will follow Hawkeye. I'll give you a helping hand if you'll allow me. I want you both checked out to be sure the serum is working properly and the results stable.Most people wear insulated garments in open water. Then we can get you proper attire and quarters and figure out our next step. I'd advise you to let me work things out. Escape is a bad idea. Your condition may not be stable and the open sea is a very hostile environment you know nothing about." He says a little exasperated, "I still don't know your name, lady agent." Clint snorts when Aquaman's attention is lavished on Nat. Not something he hasn't seen before. However, seahorse! He climbs up onto Storm's back carefully, or well swims onto anyhow, trying to figure out how to work the saddle. When he's set he looks to Aquaman, "How do we him to go?" "Black Widow," Natasha responds coolly, placing her hand in Orin's. "Or Agent Romanova, if you prefer." A small smile tugs at her lips seeing how boyishly happy Clint is at the idea of riding a seahorse, but she quickly dismisses it. She looks at the King of Atlantis, and nods slightly. "Thank you, and your people, for saving our lives. If it would not be too much trouble, I need to check in with my superiors, let them know we still live. It's been days-- I am not sure exactly how long, but several days-- since we went MIA. They will be concerned." Aquaman takes the Black Widow's hands and begins swimming after Storm. "You're welcome. I'm not sure what kind of contact we can arrange, Agent. I'm not inclined to be hostile to SHIELD but see my side of things. I tell them you're here and they want to send a mission to pick you up... no they can't you were made waterbreathers. I don't want a SHIELD base camp set up here to watch you and spy on us. I'm very suspicious where my people are concerned. I have to be since this merger. Let me continue to check your story and I will use my Justice League contacts to inform your superiors. Give me a day." They begin moving fast. Very fast through the water towards the palace. Natasha looks displeased, but nods an agreement. "One day," she allows. And she allows herself to be dragged along to the palace.